How a 42-Year-Old Businessman Made It Into F1 Practice at Hungary

F1 is different, its usually a sport reserved for elite athletes, best in the world, most have been racing since age five and raised on kart tracks, tranined by professionals and backed by sponsors before they even hit their teens.

But something happened in 2005.

At the Hungarian GP, a man named Chanoc Nissany, who was a successful businessman from Hungary, lined up for F1 free practice at the age of 42.

No karting background, no junior world titles, just passion, money and an unshakable belief that he belonged behind the wheel of the most powerful cars in the world.

This wasn’t just rare. It was unbelievable.

A very late start

Nissany didn’t touch a race car until he was 38 years old. While most drivers were preparing for Formula 3 by that age—or retiring—he was starting his first season in Hungarian Formula 2000.

Remarkably, he didn’t embarrass himself. In fact, he performed well, even winning the national championship multiple times in the following years. But still, it was a far cry from the level required to compete with the best in the world.

Yet somehow, in 2005, he became a test driver for Minardi, one of F1’s backmarker teams at the time. The arrangement was widely believed to be a mix of private funding and pure determination.

Hungarian GP, 2005 – The dream comes true

Then came the surreal moment. During the Friday Free Practice session at the 2005 Hungarian Grand Prix, Nissany was given a real F1 car to drive in front of thousands of spectators. His home crowd cheered. The cameras rolled. The timing screens lit up.

And then… reality kicked in.

He was over 12 seconds off the pace of the leaders. That’s not a typo. Twelve.

Midway through the session, he lost control at Turn 4, spun into the gravel, and his run was over.

But the most infamous moment? He was still strapped into the car when it was lifted by a crane — because he reportedly couldn’t remove the steering wheel to get out on his own.

The photo of that moment went viral. Even years later, fans still share it online as one of F1’s most baffling visuals.

“Too Much Grip!”

There was also the radio message that became legend. In a sport where every driver complains about needing more grip, Nissany went the other way:

“I have too much grip!”

Engineers must have blinked in disbelief. It was as if he had landed from another planet. A planet with very different racing physics.

The end of a short F1 chapter

After that practice session, Minardi quietly reassigned him. He never returned to a Grand Prix weekend again. His spot was given to another driver, and Nissany’s time in F1 was over almost as quickly as it began.

But he didn’t stop racing altogether. He returned to Hungary’s domestic championships, where he had real success over several years. Later, he turned his attention to circuit development and motorsport investment, playing a major role in the creation of the Balaton Park Circuit, one of Hungary’s newest professional tracks.

Say what you will, but Nissany achieved something millions of fans only dream about. He may not have been fast. He may not have had the pedigree. But he sat in a Formula 1 car, on a race weekend, in front of the world.

And no one can take that away from him.

What can we say more

Chanoch Nissany’s story is a strange one. It’s easy to laugh, and many still do, but it’s also hard not to respect the sheer audacity of it all.

He didn’t care about expectations. He didn’t follow the traditional path. He simply wanted to drive a Formula 1 car, and somehow, against all odds… he did.

Even if he needed help getting out.